


Suspicious Minds

by Birdfluff



Category: Team Fortress 2
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Developing Relationship, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Multi, hinted napoleon complex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-29
Updated: 2016-08-29
Packaged: 2018-08-10 12:54:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,982
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7845886
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Birdfluff/pseuds/Birdfluff
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It wasn't unheard of that Spy's curiosity and selfish tendencies could be taken a little too far under some circumstances.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Suspicious Minds

Spy had his moments where he could be overly thinking a concept. However, he could not be this case. He was certain that those three were in a relationship. He had been observing them for quite some time now, five months perhaps. They were almost never in same room with each other unless it was the mess hall, shower room, and on the battlefield. He did stalk the batter a few times, since the boy was terrible at subtly going into the doctor's lab for seemingly no reason. It would be too risky to hang around to just watch the two talk through the window, so Spy never stayed long. He noticed the bushman doing the same. He caught them once when all three of them were just talking in the infirmary with nothing wrong. Wasting the doctor's time, who just merely smiled and participated in the conversation. Laughter, smiles, hovering, kissing, they could be their loving selves around each other with no one else watching.

It was cute for them to think no one would notice how they lagged behind while returning to the base at the end of the day.

Spy hated this. Scout was too young, too inexperienced, too naive, too gullible for two men at least ten years older than Scout. It won't end well. The doctor is too careless. That bushman is too... he had no idea where to begin with him. He contemplated on simply walking up to the doctor and stating his beliefs, since that man was the only one who seemed to know the truth. His pride made him put aside that option.

He thought about inquiring the boy, but he knew that wouldn't end well.

With the bushman, however... The man was just as predictable as the batter if not even more so. The snake knew how to push his buttons. He figured a small chat with him would prove some things to him.

“Spook.”

“Bushman.”

Sniper glared at him from his deck chair, arms crossed, legs wide, his face stone cold. It was obvious that the Frenchman was not welcomed here. “What'd you want?”

“I just have a simple question for you, then I'll leave soon after you answer.” His nose wrinkled. The smell of rancid outdoorsy oder radiating off of him disgusted Spy.

His eyebrow cocked up, “Oh yeah?”

“Confirm my beliefs, bushman, it seems you have grown quite fond of the doctor and that brat.”

“It's called friendship, not sure if you've heard of it.”

“How humorous.” Spy rolled his eyes, “Listen to me, bushman, are you not a professional?”

His frown turned into a thin line.

“You are an assassin, as you call yourself. A professional killer. This is out of your league. You have never in all of your career here ever shown interest.”

Abruptly, the Aussie stood up to his full height, towering over the spy who stood there like a statue, briefly holding his breath. “Are you criticizing how I do my job?”

“You can take it as criticism. I thought a loner like you wouldn't be interested.”

“Interest is the wrong word you could have picked.”

“Oh? Is lust better?”

Sniper's face twitched. Strike one. “No. I'm not the type of person to just brush someone off, unlike you. That was two questions now.”

“I see. I won't pry further then.”

This confused the stinky Aussie that stood there with furrowed brows, “You... won't?”

“Of course. I was merely curious. I now see that you have no interest in them.”

“What does it matter to you?”

“Again. You're a professional. Professionals like you keep to yourself. They don't let things like love get in the way.”

His hands turned into fists as his lips curled back to snarl, “Speak for yourself, Spook.”

“I am, actually. I am righting my wrongs as we speak.”

“I don't believe you.”

“You don't need to.”

The jarate slinging Aussie was going to try to choke or punch him if he didn't start moving away from him, so he made his exit. He heard the bushman stumble in an attempt to follow him before stopping and grumbling to himself. Strike two.

~~~

Spy let the day drone on until the suspicious gazes from the camper eventually waned. He noticed nothing from Scout's end. Medic spoke to him as normal. Did the jar man in actuality did not say anything to them? This piqued his curiosity.

It further proved his theory. The Aussie had two choices, to speak or not to speak. He expected either outcome and had a plan for the corresponding result, but bushman surprised him. It made him wonder how truthful he was in this relationship. He wanted to push that.

Medic always persuaded the sniper to join the group. Spy was fortunate that today was one of those days that the repulsive man listened to the doctor instead of sneaking off back to his equally repulsive van.

Spy made sure to sit across from him, which in turn earned him a brief glare. He knew that the jar man was going to attempt to switch seats with someone or sit beside the brat. Spy wasn't going to let him have that.

“I didn't appreciate what you did last night, Sniper.”

Knowing well that he rarely if never used classnames, the bushman's breath audibly snagged at the sound of it. He stared at him with wide eyes. Out of the corner of his eye, Spy could see that Scout had heard him.

“What are you talking about?” The sniper replied slowly.

"You know what I meant. I don't think you'd appreciate me talking about such a thing in detail as we eat. I just wanted to make it known to you before you hide away in your disgusting van."

Momentarily, the Aussie glanced the his two proposed lovers and his face steady blossomed into a reddish hue. It clicked. He glared daggers at Spy, teeth grinding together, "You're right, Spook, I _don't_ appreciate it. Hell, I don't appreciate you talking to me right now. If you keep this up, I'm going to do some things to you that you're gonna regret.”

Strike three.

"Are you now? Tonight then?" Spy's amused, sultry smirk set fire behind the marksman's shades. From the look of death in his eyes, he was going to grab Spy, fling him over the table and strangle him. However, he looked around once again. The table continued to hold noise, except for two people. His jaw slacked as his eyes avoided any contact. His gaze did drift back up to the snake to sneer. At least the bushman was smart enough to realize that his words could be taken in multiple directions without context, and the moron was too shy, too afraid to try to defend himself after the embarrassment.

Without another word, the jar man stood up and exited the hall. Spy didn't have to look around to see the damage done. He could hear the laborer to his left confront the boy while the doctor remained quiet.

Five minutes later, he watched the engineer with an arm around the scout escorting the boy out of the hall. Whatever happens after this event didn't matter to him. _He_ was long gone now.

After the meal however, he did not quite expect a hand to suddenly drag him along to the infirmary. Medic gave him a harsh glare.

~~~

Scout felt like he just got repeatedly punched in the gut. Everything inside him churned as his world fell apart like shattering glass. His legs were collapsing. It was like he had a hole in his stomach and all his blood drained out of his body. 

“Easy there, pardner.” Engineer patted his shoulder, shaking him slightly. “We're goin' to him right now, and we'll get things cleared up, alright?”

His tone hinted at repressed confusion. All the Texan knew right now is that the batter was shutting down mighty fast for some reason. His body quaked and he would not speak. Engie had offered to take him to Medic but that was met with a hearty head shake.

'I need to see him,' was all he could verbally get out of the boy, so he was now escorting him outside.

The van, thankfully, was still in the same spot as always. He had to be inside, if not, Scout was in trouble and Engineer had no idea how to handle the boy having a panic attack. Taking him to Medic was the second option if he couldn’t calm him down.

As they headed up to the camper, Engineer noticed the runner's breathing had accelerated.

“Take it easy there, son. Are you sure you want to--”

Scout pushed past him and scurried over to the camper door, wiggling the locked handle desperately. The Texan exhaled and carefully eased the batter away from the door. He knocked, “Hey, Sniper? You there?”

“Truckie, I need to be alone right now.”

Before Engie could respond, Scout abruptly cried out, “Open the damn door, you fuck!!”

As requested, Sniper opened the door hurriedly. His mouth ran dry at the sight of Scout's trembling figure. He stepped out of the doorframe and slowly advanced with arms reaching towards the Bostonian, who quickly reeled back in panic. The rifleman flinched and halted.

“Don't touch me...!” His heart broke at his trembling voice.

His arms fell limp at his sides, his voice was barely audible, “Scoutie...”

“What... do you have to say for yourself? Huh? How long has this been going on?”

“It was never a thing to begin with.”

“Oh yeah? Fucking prove it.”

“S-Scoutie, please, you can't honestly believe that shithead.”

“Of course, I don't believe him! I don't know if I should believe you right now! I saw your face!”

“Why do you think I would ever be in a relationship with that bastard?!”

“I don't know!!” His voice cracked, “... T... To have something I don't?!”

His jaw dropped. He tried to step forward again, “Darlin--”

“STOP!”

He obeyed, tears streaming continuously down his face, “I'm... nothing. Like him. I would never just... take advantage of you like that.”

“I want you to prove it! Do you even love me?!”

“Of course, I bloody love you!”

“Do you even care about me?!”

“I care about _you_ so _much_...”

“Prove it,” Scout stuttered out, “Why are you just standing there?!”

“I'm waiting for your consent. What are you okay with me doing right now?”

“What the fuck are you talking about?!”

“I'm not hugging you, kissing you, touching you. I'm not going to do anything until you tell me it's okay. I can stand here as long as you want.”

Scout gaped at him for the longest time. His rage melted away extravagantly as he desired for his touch again. He wanted to feel safe in his arms and be held. He wanted to smell his familiar outdoorsy scent. Have his lips on his skin. He needed to hear his voice pressed up against his ear. After a moment, he croaked, “Get... Get over here you asshole.”

Without hesitation, the Aussie ran into his arms and picked him up as they embraced. Scout wrapped his legs tightly around his middle.

“Kiss me, you fuck...!” Scout managed to gasp out from his crying.

Willingly, the marksman began pecking at his shoulder, neck, and face until finally landing on his lips for a salty sweet kiss. The runner cupped his face then moved his hands to the back of his head, desperate to keep their lips from separating. Sniper did not refuse or try to break it until the boy had enough. The runner clung to him like a baby koala. Stroking at his hair, grabbing onto him, kissing him until he got too caught up in sobbing to continue. Scout buried his head into his neck.

“I got you, darlin, I got you.”

“I know... I know... I'm sorry. Fucking hell, I'm so sorry…! I’m fucking awful…!”

“Shhhhhshhhhshhshh. You’re not. Honestly, you’re not.” He let himself sit on the dusty ground to hold his lover better, “I can't take it when you're like this.”

“I'm sor--”

“Shhhh, Scout, luv, shhhh. Just take it easy right now. Ok?” He swayed a little to help with calming the boy down as well as continuing to caress his skin with his lips.

Eventually, Engineer coughed to remind them that they were not alone after another minute. Sniper heard his footsteps slowly stepping towards him, which set his heart pounding. He looked up and was astonished to see a smile on the Texan's lips.

“You got it from here, slim?”

Sniper could only manage a nod.

Engie returned the gesture and the marksman momentarily watched him saunter back to the base.

There was no sign of the boy calming down for at least five minutes. The rifleman did not pause in holding him or kissing him until he was told to. It was when Scout's breathing slowed did the Aussie relax slightly. The batter wished to be closer to him, even if it was physically impossible. He squirmed as he practically buried himself in his lover's touch. Scout pecked his skin in a form of gratitude before nestling his head into the crook of his neck. They sat there in silence.

Until the Bostonian spoke with malice in his voice that vibrated against the marksman's throat, “We're gonna kill that son of a bitch.”

“We are,” Sniper agreed lowly.

Rage consumed Scout that he began shaking once more, seething.

“We're gonna kill him right now,” The runner pulled away from him, however the marksman did not let him go far before bringing him back into his arms.

“I'm not letting you go until I make it up to you.”

The boy paused briefly before squirming and kicking his legs, “You.... you ass. You fucking ass! You...! Let me go!”

“No.”

“Sniiiipes.”

“Scooouuuttieee.”

The batter struggled against him for a while, using his arms, his legs, anything to give him an advantage to push away. The Aussie kept a firm yet gentle hold on him. The bastard was still giving him kisses too. He wanted to yell at him. To tell him to stop. He couldn't.

Scout gave up and nestled back into him, wrapping his arms around him, “... I'm sorry.”

“Shhhhshh, you're fine, darl. Don't worry, we'll get him.”

“I love you. I freaking love you so much...”

“I love you, too.”

~~~

Medic stood there, glowering at the Frenchman with narrowed eyes. His voice was gravel to the ears, harsh and can give you a fierce gash if one decided to skid across it. “Was that the truth?”

At first, Spy did not reply.

The doctor decided to clarify, his tone rising, “Was any of what you said to Sniper true?”

“Of course.”

“And why, if you can tell me, did you do that in front of everyone?”

“He did not wish to talk privately last time, so I decided to take the public approach. The bushman does not care for my needs.”

His eye twitched and his lips curled back into a firm frown, “Spy. How long has this been going on?”

“How long do you think this has been going on?”

The anger lifted slightly behind his eyes as Medic mulled over the question for a moment, “Never?”

“That is up for you to decide.”

“... Alright,” He spoke slowly, “but you did this for a reason, and I know why.”

“Do you?”

“How long have you known about us?”

“Five months.”

An eyebrow cocked up, “You knew for five months?”

“I _speculated_ for five months”

Medic hesitated, looking him over, “And are any of your speculations cleared up now?”

“Indefinitely.”

“I see.” The field medic muttered, uncomfortably, “Are you worried about _him_?”

“Yes.”

The German's eyes widened slightly. He paused. Gears in his mind churned. There was not any way to be certain that this man was actually telling the truth. “Are we too old for him?”

“Indeed.”

“To go this far?”

“Define far.”

“You have broken their trust.”

Spy merely hummed as he let the doctor’s words drift throughout his head. He reached for his pack of cigarettes in his coat pocket but a hand interjected.

“No smoking in my infirmary.”

“Fine. I only did what I had done to confirm my speculations. You have already helped me with that as well as _their_ responses.”

“And what exactly are you going to do with this information? Hold it against us as black mail?”

“That is a possibility.”

He huffed, “Are you telling the truth?”

“It's all in the matter of perspective, my good doctor, do you think I'm telling the truth?”

Medic did not answer. Inwardly, he was frustrated. Did he get nothing out of him? He answered his questions so fluidly. This gave him a new perspective on the way his two lovers hated the Frenchman so vividly. Medic didn't hate him, persae. No, at the moment, Spy annoyed him. He could take this further. He could strap him down to his surgery table and take this whole thing to another level that was more than necessary. Then again, he wasn't sure if the snake deserved that treatment or not. He wondered how far he could be pushed, how well he was trained, what organs he could replace. He would be a perfect subject for that kind of treatment.

“Do you, doctor?”

This pulled him from his trance, “Of course not. Tell me, what torture have you endured, Herr Spy?”

“Pardon?”

“I'm just curious of what ways to get the real information out of you.”

This was beyond what Spy expected. He could not exactly back out of it quickly either. He stood there transfixed, “I can assure you that the ways I have been tortured are classified. I cannot merely say what has gotten me to or not to talk.”

“Hm. What a shame.”

The snake eyed the field medic's small movement: his twitching fingers, his growing smile. It took all of Spy not to fidget. He could hear footsteps from the hallway. He prayed that this could be some form of escape. “Am I free to go, doctor?”

“I don't know, Herr Spy.” His grin dropped as well as his tone, “Are you?”

Medic grabbed his arm and before either of them could react, the door to the infirmary swung open to reveal the engineer. Much to Spy's discretion, the field medic did not release his grip on him.

For a moment, Engineer was confused of what he walked into before saying slowly, “I didn’t think I'd find ya here, Spy.”

The doctor scowled at him as he spoke with venom dripping from his mouth, “Engie. You have the worst timing.”

The Texan straightened his back, his mouth twitching. “Yeah, I can... see that you're about to kill 'im. Can you, uh, do me a favor, doc, and postpone that?”

“Give me one good reason to. You have twenty seconds.”

Engie thought of what on earth the doctor could be so enraged at Spy for. Until he recalled the doctor and himself having conversations about a particular two. So that’s why he stopped talking about them all the sudden. The Texan at the time put that aside because he thought he just lost interest. Right now, he was somewhat glad that wasn’t the case.  
“I think Sniper and Scout need you more.” The grip on the assassin tightened. Quickly, Engie reiterated, “They're fine! I made sure that no one got hurt. They made up. But you should still see them, you know... make sure they're... _okay_.”

The room held a stiff silence until finally Medic let go of the snake and it hissed in pain. The field medic took a moment to collect himself via breathing deeply before doing anything else. He looked back over at the engineer, then at the snake, and then left without another word.

When his footsteps faded, the assassin exhaled, “My appreciation, amigo.”

That was only a split second before the engineer's fist reached his face. Spy reeled back, holding his injury and gritting his teeth. “Laborer, please! Why the hell are _you_ getting upset over this?!” His jaw felt intensely awful as he spoke. A bone must have been fractured.

“I need you to explain some things to me, like why you stepped out of line like that?”

“Excuse me? There was no line to step over. This is something you should not involve yourself with.”

“Like what you did earlier today?”

Spy fell silent. Engie stopped him when he tried to open his mouth.

“What was that whole scheme for you to gain from? For them to break up? Blackmail?”

The assassin's gazed drifted to the wall.

“You made the two cry because of what you did. They're lucky to have that much trust in each other to make up.”

Spy gave a huff of dissatisfaction.

Engie frowned, shaking his head, “... You... can be so heartless, you know that? I know you and Sniper have it out for each other, but that’s no way to go through with this.”

The assassin flinched, definitely from the pain in his jaw and not from how the Texan's tone dramatically grew soft and fragile. “Was breaking my jaw a viable part of your plan to make me listen to you?”

“It seemed like the only way to get your attention... Do you want the medigun?”

“Don't pity me.”

Engineer sighed, “Fine. Be that way. But I ain't done with you yet, son.”

“I'm sure.”

~~~

Relief swept over the doctor like a tidal wave when he saw the two sitting on the ground holding each other close. They were practically taking each other in. It was a refreshing sight to see after interrogating the spy. He advanced briskly towards them, the dry dirt crunching at his feet. Sniper peered over with a ghost of a smile.

Medic knelt down beside them. He tried to get a better look at the batter's face, however it was buried within the marksman's neck.

“Everything okay?” He asked after another short lapse of silence.

The rifleman nodded, “Yea, lot better now. I'm just glad you didn't see what happened before.” He kissed the top of the runner's head, “Poor darl.”

“Hmm...” The field medic ran his fingers through the Bostonian's hair to earn a shiver and a surprised squeak. Scout did not look at him, but, he did lean into his touch. Medic's smile was brief as it slowly formed into a thin line, “... I spoke with him.”

Sniper’s body stiffened, “Did you get anything out of him?”

“I'm not sure. He was... incredibly straightforward with me... for what it seems. I _was_ going to get more out of him if the engineer did not interrupt. But maybe that was for the best. I was letting my anger take all of this... possibly further than I should. I could be just doubting myself but...”

“He's a fucker through and through, doc. He deserved anything you were gonna give to him.” Sniper couldn't keep eye contact and his gaze met the ground, “He pissed me off yesterday evening. He came by just to ask me one question: if I am really a professional.”

Medic looked at him with huge eyes, “Liebling, I--”

“He said that I should be staying on my own, that this relationship is making me less professional. That it'll ruin me. Not his exact words but that's what came across.” The marksman shifted slightly as he glowered at the dirt. Something in the back of his mind prodded him. Vile words from his dad resurfaced. You're not a professional. You're a sick killer.  
This should feel different. Why did this feel similar to him?

“I hope you are not listening to him then.”

“I'm not!” He said a little too quickly. Sniper grumbled to himself, adjusting his hold on the boy, “I just hate how he knows how to push me. I hate him.”

“I know.” Medic brought Sniper's head back over to face him with his hand and stroked his cheek with his thumb. “But you shouldn't let him get on your nerves that easily.”

The rifleman winced. The doctor was right. He shouldn't, yet he felt like this was all caused by him. If he didn't say anything, would that prove moreover of how he wasn't a professional? What did that snake even want from him?

“You two should stand up.”

“Right,” Sniper exhaled, happy to relieve himself from his troubling mind. He nudged the runner on him, “C'mon, darlin', it's getting late.”

“I don't want you to go.” The small, frail tone of his voice chipped at the marksman’s heart. Fuck, now he just wanted to kiss him all over again.

He gave him another kiss to his temple, “I don't want you to either, but we both need sleep.”

After a moment of hesitation, Medic prodded, “My room seems like a viable option.”

Sniper stared up at him, “Really?”

The doctor smiled a little, “Of course, I do think we all need to stay together after what happened.”

“Yeah, I'm with you there” He grunted as he struggled to get up with Scout clinging onto him. “Crikey, I'm getting too old for this.”

Medic quickly, gingerly held the marksman by the arms and slowly brought him onto his feet. The Aussie managed to give him a strained smile, “Thank you, luv,” He patted the runner's back, “How you doin?”

“Mmm.”

“I'll take that as an alright. How's that?”

Scout hummed again, nuzzling his neck.

The field medic smirked, “My, how clingy.”

“I know. He just can't get his hands off me.”

The runner hummed loudly, making the two giggle.

He wished for Medic to keep talking as they trekked back into and through the base. His mind felt like an endless cycle of guilt and self doubt that was steadily growing out of control like a nest of hornets.

He should say something, yet his tongue held still.

~~~

Medic actually let them use his bathroom to get ready. Of course, they had to force the rifleman to actually bath, which, surprisingly, did not take much bribing this time around. As he showered he managed to control his thoughts to not overflow with too much negativity. This situation was different. This relationship was not infecting his job. They have always had on and off days, but body shots were always at a minimum for him. Nothing came between himself and his job. Not even this relationship. He was fine. He was. He shouldn’t need to continue to remind himself about it.

But he did.

Every time that looming thought seeped back in, he pushed it with that same phrase.

He was a professional, dammit. He was.

As he brushed his teeth, he focused deeply on his movements. Just anything but actual thoughts. In and out. Brush, brush. Gargle and spit. He looked up at the sort of smogged up mirror and didn't see himself. For a second, he didn't have a reflection. He wished he didn't hear that mocking voice at the back of his head, saying, _'You are an assassin, as you call yourself. A professional killer. This is out of your league. You have never in all of your career here ever showed interest.'_

“It ain't out of my league. It's not. This is different.”

_'How so?'_

“I'm not you for one thing. I know the difference between my work and a relationship.”

_'Do you?'_

His stomach tightened. He could practically see the snake in the mirror. “I'm... not doubting myself on that.”

_'Are you sure you're not so concentrated that you do not realize how this relationship actually affects your life? Your choices?'_

“Stop... I'm not letting you win this.”

_'I hope you know. I hope it's ingrained in your head that this is your fault. You gave it away. You broke his heart. It was all you.'_

“You played me like a fucking fiddle...!”

_'Oh no, you played yourself. Last time I checked. Professionals. Don't. Play. Themselves.'_

Sniper punched the mirror, well, he almost did. He wished he did. His fist hovered in the air as he stared at his own reflection. At that moment, he felt like a pile of bricks crashed down on his shoulders. His legs caved in and his back hit the wall. The pain lasted for only a moment since the only thing he could remotely focus on was his thoughts devouring him. His whole world shook underneath him. His body felt wet as if caked in blood. His eyes were held shut. God fucking dammit, he ruined _everything_.

“Liebling! Was ist los? Sniper?!”

Sniper opened his eyes. That was the shaking. Medic was shaking him. He looked horrified.

“Look at me! Sniper!”

“He put... a dent in our trust, darl... He nearly tore it down.”

The field medic wiped his tears, “But we can bounce back. We have each other to get through this...”

He shook his head, “I blame myself. For all of this. I... I provoked all of this.”

“You didn't. You know he was speculating for five months. It wasn't because of you.”

“He confronted me! I made this happen! Why did I deny everything? What else was I supposed to do?!” Medic's glare made the rifleman flinch. He shut his eyes tight. Goddammit, he was mad at him now, he had to be. _I just wanted to make this right, that's all I want... and I can't do that._

Suddenly, he was pulled onto his feet. Medic snapped, “Sniper. Open your eyes. Now.”

Afraid to disobey, he did as he was told and was face to face with the mirror again.

“Look at your reflection. You know who I see? I see a professional assassin. Do you see that?”

He hesitantly nodded.

“I see... a professional who is a trustworthy and respectful lover.” His heart skipped at Sniper covering his mouth. “I see a man whose... too good to me. Too good to Scout. And I know that he doesn't deserve what he's making himself go through. He's too good for that.”

It was getting difficult for him to look at the sobbing Aussie who stared into the mirror.

“Liebling...”

He managed to put a sentence together through his blubbering, “Do you really see all that?”

“Of course, I do. I see _you_ in that reflection.”

Sniper finally turned to him and took him into his arms firmly, burying his head into his shoulder. The field medic reciprocated. He closed his eyes as he stroked at his hair. His heart was breaking at the sound of his crying. He was going to murder that snake. He was going to make him cry uncle. That man was going to break. However, for now, he held his lover close and kissed his neck.

“Mein Schatz... Don't hate yourself. Don't. You can't hate yourself over something you can't control, over someone else's actions. Do you understand?”

He nodded vigorously.

“Good... Good.”

The doctor held the rifleman’s head in his hand, wiping his tears. The poor dear was shaking like a leaf and the tears continued to flow. Medic had no idea what else to say.

“Snipes?”

Sniper jumped at the sound of Scout's voice. He lifted up his head to see the batter sitting up on the bed, half dressed and concern written all over his face, “You okay?”

“Uhh...” He swallowed, pulling away from the doctor, “Y-yeah, I'm okay.”

“No, you're not,” the batter slipped out of the bed, “Snipes, there's something I gotta say. Ok? You listenin'?”

“I'm listening.”

“I trust you.”

His swollen eyes grew huge, “S-Scout, n--”

“Don't you fucking dare. You ain't allowed to talk. Just listen to me.” He edged towards him, pointing, “I. Trust. You. You. Are nothing. Like him. Got it?”

Sniper nodded.

“You're.... _our_ Snipes. That bastard is not taking that away from us.”

Scout stood there as if frozen as he watched the rifleman hysterically weep. He looked over at Medic to see him nearly as equally stunned. The skin under their collars flared up. Neither of them had any ideas how to comfort him. What further words could be exchanged? Then again, maybe words shouldn’t be exchanged this time and seeing him cry like this made the runner feel like he should be too. 

Medic took hold of marksman’s hand, guiding him to the bed and letting him take up the middle of the mattress. The field medic surrounded him in his embrace. Scout stood, contemplating. His brain was speeding a million miles an hour that he couldn’t keep up. Blurs of thoughts turned into clouds and his eyes were beginning to moisten. He climbed into the bed and nestled into the Aussie’s back. 

Sniper couldn’t seem to calm down after the first hour, but they clung to him, they kissed him, and they loved him.

~~~

Medic woke up the next morning to see that the Aussie had vanished from the bed. Frantically, he threw the covers off and scrambled out of the room. He stopped at the door frame. There was no sign of the marksman. Worry ate at his chest as he breezed through his morning routine and then woke up his remaining lover.

The drowsy batter accompanied him to the mess hall that four more of the mercenaries, not counting themselves, occupied.

Sniper was sitting by himself as per usual, however his countenance was unreadable. The field medic frowned. This wasn’t surgery. What Sniper could be feeling right now wasn’t anything he himself was familiar with. Scout was just as uncomfortable about the situation with the way he fiddled with the end of his shirt.

“What are we gonna do?”

“We’ll wait.”

“Wait?!”

“Yes, Scout, we wait,” Medic sighed, “Unless you have any ideas.”

The runner stared worriedly at their partner, “... I just want him to be okay.”

“He will be. Please try to be patient.”

“I… Okay. I will.”

The field medic smiled a little and patted his shoulder before advancing to the semi crowded table. For a while, Scout stood there, contemplating. He carefully walked over to the lone marksman and stood at his side. He waited until the rifleman notice he was being hovered over but that moment never came. He continued to eat in silence with his head lowered. Scout made the mistake of glancing back over at the main table to be met with a stern look from Medic. Leave him alone, he mouthed. Chewing at his lower lip, the batter glanced back and forth between the two. He took a breath, “Uh, hey.”

Sniper’s hand holding his mug stuttered as he was bringing it to his lips.

“... Okay if I sit here? It’s okay to say no.”

The Aussie took a long drink from his coffee and set it gently down. He mumbled something that the batter had to strain to hear it.

“What?”

“No… but, um… Thanks, for offering.”

Scout wanted to give him some kind of form of affection. Anything. He hesitated though. His mind was in turmoil. Sadly, he had to swallow it down and stalk back to the other table.

“What did I just say?” Medic spat.

“Excuse me for caring about him.” He hissed back, sitting down beside him, “I just wanted to make sure he didn’t want to eat alone.”

The doctor huffed through his nose. This obviously earned confused and concerned glances from Engineer and Heavy sans Soldier. The two decided against trying to push the topic further.

~~~

Headshot. Headshot. Stomach. Shoulder. Ass. Damn that ought to hurt. Hip. He was off his game today.

Fuck.

He removed himself from his rifle and wiped his face with his hand. It’s hot. It’s just hot. He was sweating in uncomfortable places. It was in the middle of a round too. It might be better to join in the fray. It was control points. He needed to keep up. So he gathered his rifle and SMG and headed back to respawn.

He was fine. He was. He wasn’t bothered by the fact that Scout didn’t pay him a visit. He was busy. The enemy Soldier was gunning him down left and right. It set his stomach boiling to watch it happen. He avoided cutting into the fight. He had made that mistake before when the Bostonian was heated and got properly ignored for the rest of the day. Was he ignoring him now? No, no, he was busy. He could practically see the rage radiating off of him when he bolted out of respawn for the twelfth time today. Scout nearly ran him over with his Atomizer in hand. For a moment, he watched him spring into the battle, dog tags waving in the air.

Sniper put his weapons in the appropriate cubby and withdrew his huntsman, quiver, and razorback. 

He exhaled through his nose. He hasn’t seen the doctor much on the field. If they were being spawn camped earlier, he wouldn’t have known. Today’s match was even and frustrating. They had to race back and forth between control points and cap.  
Sniper was pleasantly surprised with how long he had lasted in his lives. With his mind clogged up with guilt, his ears were deaf to the enemy Spy’s footsteps. Somehow, that wasn’t the case. If anything, he remembered to glance behind him every now and then, to pause to listen to any sign of noise behind him. The spy only bothered him once. The rest of his deaths were the enemy Scout toiling with him. His reflects were a little too slow when grabbing for his SMG.

He hoped the doctor was doing alright, being a giant target and all. He adjusted his quiver to not dig into his spine.

His ears picked up a familiar click of heels and an annoyed sigh. Medic must have been dying often too. He might as well get out of his range if he felt the need to release his anger on his teammates letting him die. Before he could step out of spawn, the medigun’s beams coursed through his body. He whirled around to face the field medic.

His mouth ran dry, “... Um, what’s this for?”

“Overheal?”

His face grew uncomfortably warm. Dammit, he sounded like it was his first day on the battlefield. “Oh.”

Medic gave him a sympathetic smile before leaning over to kiss the corner of his mouth, “Are you alright?”

“… I’m fine.”

“Are you?”

“I’m alive, ain’t I?”

“I meant psychologically, emotionally.”

“Uh,” He pulled on his collar, “I’ll be fine.”

Medic hummed.

“Are you, um, waiting for someone?”

“Yes. Demo.”

 _So he’s just building uber off me then. Alright. I’m useful for something to him_ \-- He stopped himself, grimacing. Christ, yesterday did a number on him.

“You’ve been doing well.”

“What?”

“You’ve been doing well today.”

“Wha- no, I haven’t.”

“You’re alive, aren’t you?”

Sniper blushed, “I just… I should have been getting more headshots today.”

“Don’t beat yourself up about that too much. We all have our off days, Sniper. I think today is especially an off day for us.”

“That bad?”

“Ja. The enemy team seems to be more keen on annoying us than playing the game today. I think our poor Scout has met his match. I swear his anger is going to get him killed more than that Soldier.”

“So I keep seeing.”

Sniper saw their Demoman respawn behind them and the doctor took off with him, his long coat billowing behind him.

~~~

He missed the airborne shovel wielding Soldier by a foot above his head. If it wasn’t for gunfire whizzing by his head, Sniper would have died. The enemy Soldier was pushed back by the onfire and collided with the ground in front of the marksman. He laid there motionless. The marksman’s confusion did not last long when he heard familiar laughter and saw the Bostonian rush over to the corpse.

“HA! Whaddya think of that, asshole?!” He kicked at his side, “Don’t you dare touch ‘im!”

His famous lopsided smile was direct towards the marksman. His heart galloped. He wanted to kiss him. Drop absolutely everything give him long lasting kiss. Something just to make up for it all.

But that wouldn’t be professional, would it?

“Snipes, Spy!”

Instinctively, he whirled around with his bow drawn and released the arrow into the enemy Spy’s skull. Something sunk into his gut as he watched the spy’s corpse fall at his feet. The word was unable to be placed but it felt eerily satisfying.

“Holy shit, that was awesome!” Scout clapped him on the back, knocking the top of the razorback against his head and out of his daze. “You should really be out here more often.”

“You think so?”

“Yeah, that was badass, man!”

The Aussie smiled.

~~~

Not much changed during dinner. Scout tried to confront the rifleman but he was declined again. Sniper avoided any eye contact. He could feel the snake looking at him. He wanted to leave. The cluster of thoughts continued to annoy him. However, the thoughts were different. He felt guilty. He felt incredibly wrong. He wanted to make it up to them for being so distant today. 

Showing unwarranted affection felt as if that was too much, especially since they were hiding their relationship… well, trying to. Sniper wanted to spit on Spy’s smug face. He wanted to kiss his boyfriends in public and not give a shit. He wanted to see that stupid face revel in disgust. That wasn’t professional though… Was it? He couldn’t tell at this point.

He could not force himself to eat, so he left his dinner unfinished and trudged down the hall. He paused at a corner, the short hallway was lined with chairs leading up to double doors. The chairs looked inviting to the exhausted Aussie. The back of his mind prodded at him telling him to not piss the doctor off more by sleeping in chairs designed for patients. 

So, he decided that he was a patient. Medic was still in the mess hall and he was going to wait for him… and possibly take a nap.

~~~

Medic was expecting the Aussie to enter the infirmary eventually. Seeing him sleeping in one of the chairs was surprising but he did not wake Sniper. The marksman must have been tired from today and if he needed to sleep, he would let him rest for a while...  
He looked up from feeding his birds as the rifleman trudged in, hat in his hands, shades off his nose and hanging from his shirt pocket. He watched his lover advance slowly towards him until he was standing beside him.

Sniper did not quite look at him. His gaze was on his birds or the desk or his hat.

“Liebling, you may speak if you'd like. You're not bothering me.”

His reply was to scratch at the hat's seems. Medic let him hover over him until he was finished feeding his pigeons and gathered them all back into their cage.

Medic turned back to the marksman and looked him over. His handsome face solemn and sad, it made the doctor’s heart ache. That and his slouching which he absentmindedly fixed. The doctor then lightly kissed his lips and took ahold of his hand.

“Do you need a pickmeup, mein Schatz?”

“I guess so…” He lifted his hand to his lips, “Just not in that way, not tonight.”

“What do you have in mind then?”

Sniper hesitated, licking his lips, “Do you want to dance with me, doc?”

Medic blinked, “Was?

“Do you want to dance with me?”

“... Of... course but, there isn't any music.”

The Aussie squeezed his hand and lead him into the center of the room. He placed the doctor's free hand on his hip then he put his own hand on his shoulder. Sniper led as he hummed a song for them to dance to. Medic followed along, his face shaded with a light pink.

Sniper was musically inclined like himself, the field medic knew that much. The song he hummed was so low and mystical that made their movement slow and almost therapeutic. His eyes even felt moist at the purity of this moment.  
He wondered if the marksman could sing. He was a good dancer too, if not a little clumsy with nearly stepping on the doctor’s feet at times. They turned smoothly, gently in a circle. When did Sniper learn how to ballroom dance?

As they moved, the rifleman eventually eased his hand off of his shoulder and onto his back, shrinking the space between them. Their gaze never broke. Sniper’s eyes had a lovely splash of green mixed in with the blue Medic had not noticed before. He was handsome, with and without his hat and shades. There was something about his raw, unguarded countenance that made his chest feel warm and tingly.

Apparently, Medic had been so distracted, that he did not noticed that they had stopped dancing. Sniper seemed to be totally focused on something else too as well to notice.

“Sniper?”

His gaze glanced down at his lips. His prolonged silence was beginning to concern him. However, that did not last long. The rifleman leaned forward and claimed his lips, gingerly pulling the field medic closer. He completely melted into the marksman’s touch as he reciprocated. 

“I’m sorry...” His low voice vibrated in his ear.

After a moment, Medic managed to come back to reality, “Whatever for...?”

“I got sort of...” He could barely keep eye contact, “lost… in your eyes. That and I just... um...”

This brought a smile to his lips, “I think that is the cheesiest thing you have ever said to me.”

The marksman huffed and began pecking at his jawline. The closeness to the doctor always made him feel more at ease. The subtle swaying was nice as well. “And I want to apologize for everything.”

“You do know that this isn’t your fault, yes?”

“I know now. I was still kind of… distant. I batted you two aside.”

“Nein. You did no such thing. You were trying to heal.” 

“I still want to make it up to you two, somehow.”

“How so?”

“I don’t know. This was just the first thing that came to my mind.”

“The… dancing?”

“Yeah...”

Medic’s giggling set his face aflame once more. “I would not mind it, if you wanted to dance again. Your humming was beautiful.”

Sniper did not answer. He hesitated. He did not wish to pull away from him just yet. Slowly, his hand traveled down to meet and hold the doctor’s hand. He kissed his cheek once more. His humming continued as he carefully took his lead. Medic felt the song than heard it, since Sniper was still nuzzled against the side of his face. It was wonderfully mesmerizing and sweet. The field medic could not help smiling. The song was lovely. Sniper was lovely. This was lovely. He soaked it in and occasionally caressed his neck with his lips as they stepped in a circle.

The two of them were too distracted in each other to notice an intruder, until he finally announced himself with a Boston accent, “Um?”

Medic unwillingly pulled away from the Ausse to see that at the door was Scout. Thankfully. He noticed something different about him pretty quickly. Like how he had a pencil lodged in his left hand and how pale his face was.

He looked at him with disappointment, “Scout. Do I want to know?”

“Really appreciate it if ya didn't ask.”

“Fine. Get over here.”

Scout rapidly walked over to them, holding out his injured palm. Medic studied it for a moment before leading him over to the surgery table and the medigun. He tried to move the pencil a little bit but with how the runner continuously whined.

“How long has this been here?”

“Five minutes...?”

Medic sighed, “Cutting your hand off might be a better solution than trying to get the pencil unstuck.”

“DOC NO!”

“Don’t shout. Please, it’ll grow back. If you’re really that against it,” the field medic sat down in his chair and patted his leg, “Sit bitte so I can have a better look.”

Scout obeyed. The doctor could not get far into loosening the pencil since every time he touched it the boy whined loudly and squirmed.

“Sniper, be a dear and get him something to bite on.”

“It fucking hurts, doc...!!”

“Yes, I know, and your moaning is hurting my ears.” Sniper handed Scout a rag, “Danke. Just bite if it hurts, liebling, and don’t move your body so much.”

With another groan, the batter snatched the wadded up rag and took it into his teeth. Tears glistened in his eyes as the field medic started fiddling with the pencil.

The marksman carefully took his free hand that Scout momentarily squeezed. After an intense five minutes, tears broke free when Medic finally got the lodged pencil to twirl. Since he couldn’t scream, he bit hard the rag, tightly squeezed Sniper’s hand and stomped his foot. His whole body wanted terribly to rebel against the horrible pain in his hand.

Inwardly panicking, an idea popped into the Aussie’s mind, “Scout, Scoutie, I want you to concentrate on this, okay?”

Medic found himself smiling when he began to hum. As he twirled the pencil down carefully, he could feel Scout’s trembling lessen. For a moment, he glanced over to see that Sniper was now kneeling down and had a hand on the batter’s head, gently stroking his hair. Foreheads connected and hands clasped. Scout seemed to be calming down even though tears continued to fall from his chin and his jaw still clenched.

Finally, he managed to get the last bits of the pencil out of his palm and Medic quickly tossed the blood covered pencil into the trash can. Afterwards, gathering around the sink to clean the wound before letting the medigun do it’s job.

“Whew... Thanks doc, here lemme pay ya.” Scout stood on his toes slightly and gave him a kiss on the lips.

The field medic smirked, “I’m guessing that I’m never going to hear the full story?”

“All I’m going to say is that I blame Pyro. So, uh, what were you two doin'?”

“Our Sniper,” Medic smiled at their lover’s surprised blushing face, “is still down from yesterday. So, he... we danced around a little bit.”

The boy blinked, “Danced?”

“Mm, it was... rather nice.”

Tepidly, Sniper held his hand out for Scout, “Would you like to dance, Scoutie?”

“Uh… Sure?”

He accepted his hand and the Aussie leads him back into the middle of the room. Before Scout could ask any more, Sniper lifted him up, humming and swinging him gently around as he moved. Nonplussed, Scout limply hung there with his arms around the rifleman’s neck.

“Uhhhh...!” He tried to fold his legs around the marksman’s middle but Sniper interrupted his humming to give him a firm no through pressed lips. Puzzled, the boy obeyed and trusted that the Aussie wasn’t going to drop him. Whenever the field medic came to view, Scout gave him quizzical looks that he merely giggled at.

The song finally caught his attention after the confusion subsided. It was really nice and soft and sweet. He felt his movements, stepping in a circle. How he held him gingerly against his chest. Sniper’s head resting on his. With his ear on his neck, he could hear his soothing heartbeat as well as feel his humming. He let it all sink in.

This was nice. 

Really nice.

He tried to dry his eyes by blinking rapidly. The dance eventually slowed down, yet Sniper did not let go of him. He stood there, just holding him.

“I love you, Snipes,” Scout mumbled into his shoulder.

“Love you too, darl.” His tone sounded fragile.

“Snipes? You okay?”

He did not know what to say. This wasn’t about spitting venom back at Spy anymore. He wanted to make sure they were comfortable, too. Was it too early for all of this? Even if they did say yes, how would they present this? What would be the consequences? 

“Earth to Snipes? You there?”

The batter took up Sniper’s whole field of vision, “I’m here.”

“You sure?”

“I am now.”

Medic was beside him, “What is on your mind, liebling?”

He paused, swallowing, “Are… you two tired of keeping this hidden?”

“Yes.” Scout replied automatically while the field medic gained a thoughtful expression.

“I have no qualms with it but is this…?”

“It’s not… that sudden. I’ve been thinking over it for a while now. Maybe a month. Then this whole thing that happened kind of pushed it.”

“I see. Anything you had in mind?”

“N-not at all. I just want it to be painless more than anything.”

“Of course. Give me the night to think it over. I’m sure I’ll have something by morning.”

“It has to involve kicking Spy in the mouth,” Scout added with a cheeky grin.

“Mmm… I’ll try to add that in.”

“Yessss.”

“You’re both wonderful,” Sniper intervened. God, he could feel his eyes tearing up again, “I--I feel so fortunate to have you two. I… Thank you. For everything.”

Their wondrous stares made his being feel lighter and warmer. The two abruptly embraced him, nearly knocking him over. Medic kissed his cheek deeply, “That can be easily said to you as well, mein Schatz. You are too sweet.”

Sniper smiled sheepishly.

The runner cupped his head in his hands, forcing his eyes downward, “You’re getting laid tonight.”

He shouldn’t have laughed, he really shouldn’t have but he did, “C’mon, Scoutie.”

“I’m fucking serious, man.”

“Not right now, darl.”

“Later?”

“Maybe.”

Scout pouted, “I want a clear answer.”

“You’ll get one later.”

He groaned, “Buuuut but but!”

“But what Scoutie?”

“You’re fucking amazing and I wanna do something about it.”

“... Kissin’ me is always a good option.”

“You’re right about that.”

~~~

Sniper got up spectacularly late the following morning. Possibly from the kissing last night that escalated pretty fast. He was confused why his two lovers let him sleep in like that, even if it was a day off. They just smiled at him. He had hurriedly gotten up from Medic’s bed and back to the camper to get ready. He found his heart pounding loud in his ears while he jogged back to the base. He continued to remind himself that if anything bad happened, they will stick together. Three against six. Run and shoot if probable. He found himself trudging down the hallways when he snapped out of his conscious. They said they would wait for him nearby the mess hall doors.

He took another left and saw them, calmly conversing amongst themselves. How were they so relaxed about this? They noticed him immediately and Scout ran up to him to drag him back to Medic.

“What are we doing exactly?”

“I need the both of you to follow my lead,” the doctor replied.

Scout saluted, “Got it, doc!”

“Okay…?” Sniper said slowly, “What’s the whole plan?”

The field medic merely smiled and pecked Sniper's cheek.

“C'mon, man, the doc and I got you!” 

He should not feel so insecure. He trusted them after all. Sniper managed a smile, “... Thank you.”

The three of them barely took a step into the hall before yelling filled up the entire room via Soldier, “THE THREE OF YOU ARE LATE WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO SAY FOR YOURSELVES?”

Medic raised an eyebrow, “It’s our day off.”

“That is no excuse for tardiness, maggots!”

“We were busy.”

“With what? This better be a good excuse.”

“Some of us were trying to get this Scharfschütze here presentable.”

Sniper’s face flared up, “I didn't look that bad...”

“Believe me, you looked terrible.”

“OI! It's not my fault that you two kept me up and made a mess of everything!” Oh god, he said too much. F-- Their smiles suddenly washed away his fears.

“So it's _our_ fault now?” Scout jabbed back, playfully, “Totally not you initiating anything?”

Oh my god, this was part of the plan?

Sniper found himself to be grinning, “I did nothing.”

The field medic rolled his eyes, “Oh, of course, you didn't! Definitely not.”

“It wouldn’t be a lot like this, would it?” The marksman grabbed ahold of his hand, pulling him into a kiss.

“Sniper!” He squealed while laughing, “That's exactly it.”

Scout took pleasure at seeing Spy’s smug face have a giant frown, but soon his heart sunk when he noticed the stares they were getting. Of course, this was part of the plan, but the batter felt himself rueing about accepting this. He began to step back until he bumped into something solid behind him. The world resurfaced and he noticed Sniper and Medic either side of him.

“Liebling, you’re fine.”

“We’re here, remember?”

Uncomfortable warmth flooded throughout his body, “Right, heh. Sorry...”

They kissed the sides of his face and the batter immediately smiled, covering his face. God, did Sniper just want to pick him up and swing him around and kiss him--... Wait, he can _do_ that now… He quickly enacted on his impulses, which made the boy squeal in surprise.

“You’re so cute!” He said in between kissing his neck, since the runner continued to cover up his face. Scout could only whine and giggle in response.

“So, ya’ll are in a relationship, right?” Engie intervened from the table, a grin planted on his face.

“How could you have guessed?” Medic teased back. “Alright, Sniper, liebling, put him down.”

The rifleman groaned in dismay while the batter just giggled to himself.

The field medic sighed good naturedlly, “You can do this later. Essen.”

“Fiiine.”

Engineer was ecstatic for them, and he was glad that everyone seemed to have been greatly amused by the three’s antics, even though Soldier was pretty confused. Until he gazed over at Spy, he ate in silence. His shoulder stiff as a board and… he couldn’t exactly read his face.

“Backfired, huh?” He guessed after a taking a drink from his coffee.

Spy huffed like a child in time out.

“How’s your jaw?”

“ _Fine_.”

Occasionally, Engie glanced back and forth between the three and Spy. They were so happy and comfortable now. He had never seen Sniper smile so big and participate so vividly in conversations. Scout seemed to be in a world of his own after that kiss, staring off into space, leaning on one or the other. He couldn’t shake off his grin or repress his giggling. Medic was his normal self if not more colorful than anything. Of course, when he glanced over at the snake, he was brooding, annoyed, and silent.

“You can’t always get what you want, you know.”

“Do not lecture me, laborer. As if you are familiar with my needs.”

“Can be if you let me.”

Spy sighed loudly and refused to reply.

He gave up on him, “Well, I think they’re just darn cute together. I don’t think I’ve ever seen ‘em this happy.”

“There are going to be problems if it extends into the battlefield.”

“Heh, you really think so?”

“If they are this open about it, yes.”

“Nah, I don’t think that’ll be the case.”

“... How so?”

“They didn’t do it before. Why would they now? We’re all professionals here. Just because they’re in love don’t mean nothing. I never saw a rule that you couldn’t fall in love and do your job.”

Spy finally looked at him. In the eyes, even. He could finally read his expression now. Annoyance, yet… thoughtful. Engineer was getting uncomfortable from his prolonging stare. “You need somethin’?”

He hummed. Just. Hummed. He got up from the table, gathered his plate, and left.

Did… he actually make Spy think about something? He doubted it. Turning his attention back on the trio, he couldn’t help but smile.


End file.
